India suffered an embarrassing defeat against South Africa at home in the first of the two Test series yesterday (November 16). The hosts failed to chase down a target of 124, the second-lowest total in a defeat for India behind the 120 against West Indies in 1997, which instead handed the Proteas their first Test match win in the country in 15 years.
The rank turner curated at the Eden Gardens became the centre of controversy as South African spinner Simon Harmer ran through the Indian batting attack with four wickets in each innings. Following the defeat, former India captain Sourav Ganguly passed on some words of advice for the Indian coach Gautam Gambhir, while highlighting the inclusion of discarded India pacer Mohammed Shami for the next game.
Speaking to Sportstak, Ganguly said, “I am very fond of Gautam; he has done well in the 2011 and T20 World Cups. He will continue for a while, but he must play on good pitches in India. He must have faith in Bumrah, Siraj, and Shami. I think Shami deserves a place in this Test team. Shami and the spinners will win Test matches for him.”
For the unversed, Shami has been out of the Indian setup for some time now with his last appearance coming during the Champions Trophy 2025 winning campaign earlier this year. Furthermore, his last Test appearance came during the WTC Final 2023 against Australia.
Nevertheless, he has looked in tremendous form of late in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season, taking 18 wickets in six innings, including a fifer and a four-wicket haul.
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Another major concern for India going into the decisive IND vs SA 2nd Test will be the availability of skipper Shubman Gill. He could bat only three balls in the first innings of the first Test before leaving the field due to neck spasms. He later had to be admitted to the hospital and did not play in the remainder of the first match.
While Gill has now been released from the hospital, there is still no confirmation if he will travel to Guwahati or play the contest. In such a case, India will have to name a replacement but an official confirmation is yet to come.
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